Kering removed creative directors at Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen, and Brioni between Q4 2024 and Q2 2025, leaving three houses responsible for roughly €4.2 billion in combined annual revenue without creative leadership simultaneously. CEO Luca de Meo, who took the role in January 2024, is orchestrating the exits as part of what the company describes internally as a generational refresh, though no successors have been publicly named at any of the three labels.
Anthony Vaccarello departed Saint Laurent in February after nine years. Sarah Burton left Alexander McQueen in September 2024 after 26 years, the final thirteen as creative director. Brioni's Norbert Stumpfl exited in April after four years. The trio generated €2.8 billion at Saint Laurent, €780 million at McQueen, and €640 million at Brioni in fiscal 2024, based on Kering's segmented disclosures. All three exits were announced as mutual partings, with no interim appointments. Design teams report directly to brand CEOs while searches continue.
The simultaneity matters because Kering's model depends on creative stability at scale. Gucci, which represents 52% of group revenue, has absorbed three quarters of consecutive declines under Sabato De Sarno, who replaced Alessandro Michele in November 2022. Bottega Veneta, under Matthieu Blazy since 2021, is the only major house showing double-digit growth, up 21% in Q1 2025. De Meo inherited a portfolio where six of eight brands were either in transition or underperforming. His choice to accelerate rather than stagger creative changes suggests he is prioritizing a clean 2026 slate over protecting 2025 comps.
The risk is compressed. Creative director searches at heritage houses now take twelve to eighteen months on average, up from six to nine months in 2019, per Floriane de Saint Pierre's executive-search data. Kering is running three in parallel, each requiring different profiles. Saint Laurent needs a commercial architect who can sustain €300 million in annual leather-goods revenue without alienating Vaccarello's installed base. McQueen requires someone who can respect Burton's craft-driven legacy while aging down a customer base where the median age has drifted to 46 since 2020. Brioni needs a designer who understands €8,000 suiting construction but can make tailoring relevant to a 34-year-old allocating $240,000 annually to wardrobe.
Watch for Saint Laurent's appointment first, likely by September 2025, given the label's revenue weight and the need to lock Spring 2026 before Milan slots fill. McQueen's successor will surface by year-end, timed to the October London schedule. Brioni, the smallest and most structurally challenged, may stay vacant into Q1 2026 unless Kering finds a menswear specialist willing to work outside the Paris-Milan axis. De Meo has also quietly expanded Kering's in-house brand-strategy unit by 40% since January, adding former LVMH product-development directors, a signal that creative hires will come with tighter merchandise guardrails than predecessors enjoyed.
The forward tell is whether de Meo seats all three before Gucci's Spring 2026 show in September. If he does, Kering enters 2026 with five of eight brands under new creative direction installed within 36 months, the fastest churn rate among the French groups since PPR became Kering in 2013.
The takeaway
Kering is running three simultaneous creative searches across **€4.2 billion** in revenue, prioritizing a 2026 reset over 2025 stability.
Editorial & Disclosure Notice: This article was written with artificial intelligence from public sources and is published without individual human review. Artificial intelligence and other digital tools are also used for research, analysis, editing, formatting, and production. Errors, omissions, outdated information, or inaccuracies may occur. References to companies, brands, products, services, organizations, or individuals are for informational and editorial purposes and do not imply endorsement, sponsorship, affiliation, partnership, or approval unless expressly stated. All trademarks and other intellectual property remain the property of their respective owners. Opinions, analysis, estimates, and commentary are informational only and should not be construed as financial, investment, legal, tax, medical, procurement, or other professional advice. Information may be corrected, clarified, or updated after publication. Corrections or removal requests: jenny@pops4.com.
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